Marvel’s four new Avengers: Doomsday trailers confirm one thing for sure: Disney really want this to be the blockbuster hit of the year. It’s certainly unusual for a studio to begin marketing a movie so far out, but Marvel understood that Avatar: Fire & Ash – which tends to draw the kind of less-online viewers the studio used to appeal to – was a fantastic opportunity to reach their audience. We’ve had four Doomsday teasers so far, and there are unconfirmed rumors that more may yet be on the way.
Videos by ComicBook.com
According to the Russo brothers, though, we’ve been misunderstanding the footage we’ve seen over the last four weeks. “What you’ve been watching for the last four weeks… are not teasers,” they wrote in an Instagram post. “Or trailers. They are stories. They are clues.” The Russos have long loved to play with viewers, infamously dropping some pretty bizarre and indecipherable teasers for Avengers: Endgame, and it seems they’re on form. But whatever these may really be, what clues and theories can really arise from them?
9. The Doomsday Clock Explained
The four Doomsday teasers all end with a Doomsday Clock, a smart image that appears to lie at the heart of the film’s marketing. The main theory right now is that the times on the Doomsday Clock all correspond to scenes from Avengers: Endgame, and that these scenes are somehow key to the film, which increasingly feels like something of an Endgame sequel. According to Everything Always, these are as follows:
- The Steve Rogers code: Corresponds to an Endgame scene in which the Ancient One warns that the universe would be destroyed were the Time Stone removed.
- The Thor code: A scene where the Avengers are capturing Loki, with the scene featuring the Mind Stone and the Space Stone.
- The X-Men code: Thor and Rocket discuss stealing the Reality Stone.
- The Wakanda code: Rocket talking to Ant-Man about traveling into space, immediately after the time heist plan is hatched.
On the face of it, this seems to indicate the Infinity Stones will be somehow tied to Endgame. Two of these scenes are already potentially important for the Multiverse Saga; the Ancient One’s warning seems prescient given the Time Stone was destroyed in the MCU reality, while the capture of Loki created the whole branched timeline that led to Loki seasons 1 and 2.
8. It’s Pretty Clear Characters Have Been Hidden From Some Shots
The cinematography in the Doomsday teasers has been breathtaking, a marked improvement from the Russo brothers’ previous work for Marvel. That makes the Wakanda teaser all the more curious, because several of the Doomsday shots seem to be hiding missing characters. The first scene sees Shuri walking into what seems to be the desert, with a vast expanse of empty space at either side; the second sees the Thing introduce himself to the Wakandans, and there’s room for someone else to be stood with him. It’s presumably someone Marvel don’t want viewers to know he’s met, and there’s speculation he’s with Doctor Doom.
7. “Fatherhood” Is a Major Theme of Avengers: Doomsday
Several of the teasers feature common themes, too, which seems hardly coincidental. The first two are tied by the theme of fatherhood; Steve Rogers is a father now, and he’s presumably suiting up again to protect his son. Meanwhile, Thor’s teaser sees him pray to Odin that he will be able to fight to protect his adopted daughter, Love, and return to her triumphant. Fantastic Four: First Steps‘ post-credits scene also indicated Doctor Doom is interested in Franklin, the son of Reed Richards and the Invisible Woman. It’s clear a theme is developing here.
The Russos have long been interested in the father-son dynamic, especially in their MCU movies. Captain America: Civil War is driven in part by the fact the Winter Soldier killed Tony Stark’s dad, and Endgame reunited Iron Man with Howard Stark. Infinity War‘s most dramatic subplot, meanwhile, involved the relationship between Thanos and Gamora. There’s a sense in which the Russos are reverting to type here.
6. Avengers: Doomsday is About the Afterlife Too
It’s striking, meanwhile, that two of the Avengers: Doomsday teasers feature a focus on the afterlife. Thor’s teaser sees him praying to Odin, who we can be confident is in Valhalla after Thor: Love & Thunder‘s post-credits (with Heimdall, Jane Foster, and the rest of the Asgardians). Meanwhile, the Wakanda trailer features dialogue in which Shuri says a king’s duty is to prepare his people for the afterlife. This theme is all the more interesting given the afterlife has already figured into the Multiverse Saga, notably in Moon Knight.
5. Is Namor the King Preparing His People For the Afterlife?
Shuri’s dialogue in the Wakanda trailer is certainly ominous, and most viewers have assumed it’s related to M’Baku. But it’s striking that the “afterlife” comment is made alongside an image of Namor, not M’Baku. In fact, looking closely at the Wakanda trailer, things look back for Namor’s people; they’re seen in a desert, looking out over an ancient building that feels like it mirrors their own architecture. Is it possible the waters have somehow drained, dooming Namor and his Atlanteans? If so, the cliffs seen in front of Shuri in another shot could actually be exposed continental shelf.
4. There Are Sentinels Right Behind Cyclops
The X-Men teaser gives a stunning glimpse of a comic-book-accurate Cyclops facing what appears to be an apocalyptic defeat, with the world burning around him. Most ominously, there’s also the leg of a Sentinel behind him – not in front of him. It feels as though this could be the X-Men’s last stand, with some of the mutants not living long enough to cross the multiverse.
3. Thor Isn’t Using Mjolnir Anymore
Strikingly, Thor is shown holding Stormbreaker rather than Mjolnir. This was initially seen as just an amusing about-turn by Marvel, perhaps indicating the Russos simply prefer Stormbreaker (Avengers: Infinity War did go to lengths to reverse many of Thor: Ragnarok‘s twists, so there’s precedent for the Russos undoing a Waititi movie). But it’s also possible Thor has actually handed over Mjolnir to someone else who is worthy – a possibility all the more intriguing given Steve Rogers is returning.
2. Thor Has Been Separated From His Daughter
Thor’s prayer to Odin also confirms that the Odinson has somehow become separated from his daughter, Love. This in itself is noteworthy, given the two were last seen adventuring together, so something must have gone very wrong to split them up. One possibility is that Thor has been caught up in a multiversal crossover known as an incursion, and that he isn’t even in the MCU timeline anymore.
1. We Need To Be Careful About Assuming Which Universe Things Are In
That brings us neatly to the last point; that we have to be very careful of assuming which universes things are taking place in. Is this really the same Steve Rogers we last saw in Avengers: Endgame, or have the Russos planned a curveball? Which timeline is Cyclops fighting Sentinels in? And are Namor and Wakandans still in the MCU, or have they traveled to another timeline that went through an apocalypse of some kind? We’d be wise not to make any assumptions.
What do you think Marvel will reveal next, and will we learn more about RDJ’s return? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!
Most Viewed
-
Image courtesy of Tor Books/Macmillan -
Official art by Bastien Lecouffe-Deharme
